2012-Jan-23
Dana Kose announced as one of ENR Mountain States' 2012 Top 20 Under 40
Judging is complete on ENR Mountain States' 2012 Top 20 Under 40 competition, featuring a new group of the region’s most talented and community-minded young professionals under the age of 40. As in the past, the current winners were judged based on their professional achievements, contributions to the community, their education, professional affiliations and industry involvement.
2012-Jan-12
India Leads with Innovative Energy Modeling System; U.S. Implications
The ECOnirman Whole Building Performance Tool is the first of its kind in the world—a web-based simulation tool for energy code compliance. The Weidt Group, with funding from USAID, developed the tool, which assists building designers and developers in demonstrating their performance-based compliance with India’s Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC).
2012-Jan-11
Join us in Minnesota for "Getting to AIA+2030/SB2030 Energy Goals"
The Center for Sustainable Building Research with funding from the U.S. Department of Energy and the Minnesota Department of Commerce through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) with the assistance of design professionals throughout the state is offering a series of 10-4 hour training sessions on "Getting to AIA+2030/SB2030 Energy Goals."
2011-Nov-11
Read about "The Small Minnesota Company Behind India's Huge Cloud Project" in Inc. Magazine
How a 55-person business in Minnetonka developed the software solution India needed to tackle its energy problems.
2011-Oct-18
The Weidt Group’s Prasad Vaidya Awarded LEED Fellow Designation
LEED Fellows represent green building industry’s most accomplished professionals—one of 34 in the U.S.
2011-Sep-15
Read about "Predicting the True Value of Energy Use" in the Colorado Real Estate Journal
As the sayings go, "It's easier to meet a goal if you actually have one," and "It's hard to meet your goal if you don't measure your progress." Energy modeling, in simple terms, helps us design buildings and building systems to performance goals. Properly prepared energy models are important tools for informing design decisions, making design specifications and diagnosing building operations.
2011-Aug-02
Read about our "Little Green Apps" in Twin Cities Business
"Instead of becoming a 300-person consulting firm, we want to make better tools and make them available for other professionals...." says firm Principal David Eijadi, FAIA, LEED AP BD+C.
2011-Jun-27
See the BD+C follow-up interviews: "Net-Zero Energy Buildings" AIA Roundtable
David Eijadi, The Weidt Group, and Mary Ann Lazarus, HOK, talk about net-zero carbon, net-zero energy, and the process to get there.
2011-Jun-01
See how "Net-Zero Does Not Live by Design Alone: The Human Factor" at buildinggreen.com
David Eijadi, The Weidt Group, and Mary Ann Lazarus, HOK, discuss net-zero energy buildings at the AIA Convention.
2011-May-05
The Weidt Group Collaborates with HKS Team on 2011 ED+C Excellence in Design Award Winner
Aviva USA Operations Headquarters wins Commercial Honorable Mention.
2011-May-04
Inaugural Minnesota Leadership in Sustainability Award- Best Green Workplace: The Weidt Group
The Weidt Group demonstrated an official internal policy or initiative that exhibits measurable and significant environmental benefits to a workplace, its culture and its people. Submissions were judged based on innovation and measurable outcomes.
2011-Apr-19
HOK and The Weidt Group win Growing Green Award from USGBC Missouri Gateway Chapter
Judges’ Comments: The sophistication of their project approach was staggering and unique – especially in the day and age of greenwashing.
2011-Apr-04
See our contribution to Building Design+Construction's latest white paper on net-zero energy buildings
Ready or not, the U.S. design and construction industry is about to embark on an exciting journey: the development of net-zero energy buildings and homes.
2011-Apr-04
The Weidt Group’s Headquarters Office Achieves LEED® for Existing Buildings Platinum Certification
The 5800 Building, home of Bailey Properties and the Corporate Headquarters of their tenant, The Weidt Group, also obtained an ENERGY STAR® Rating of 93.
2011-Mar-04
Minnesota Cracks USGBC's Top 10 for Green Building
Minnesota ranks high in a new report from the U.S. Green Building Council. Read more in Finance & Commerce.
2011-Jan-25
Iowa's Largest LEED Gold Building Bathes 95% of Employees in Natural Light
The HKS-designed Aviva USA’s 360,000 sq ft headquarters has become the largest LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Gold Certified building in Iowa, according to the U.S. Green Building Council. The Aviva project becomes the 24th LEED Gold building in Iowa and only the fourth in metropolitan Des Moines.
Aviva USA is part of Aviva plc – the world’s sixth-largest insurance group and the first global insurance company to become carbon-neutral. In addition to HKS serving as designer and interior architect, SVPA Architects provided local representation as the architect-of-record on the project. Confluence designed many of the site sustainable features as the project’s landscape architect.
The Weidt Group provided LEED consulting.
2010-Nov-11
HOK and The Weidt Group Design Affordable Net Zero Emissions Office Building
Carbon Neutral Office Buildings within Reach - Today
2010-Apr-20
Read about our 'Run to daylight' in Finance and Commerce
When officials at the Weidt Group were looking for office space to relocate their headquarters in the early 1990s, their search ended with a skylit office studio in Minnetonka.
2009-Oct-19
Heartland Real Estate Business Feature Article, September 2009
"Designing for Energy Efficiency is Easy— On our Environment and the Bottom Line," by Julia Gauthier
2009-Aug-20
Black Hills Energy Adds Commercial New Construction to its DSM Programs
Black Hills Energy has added the Commercial New Construction (CNC) program to its demand side management program offerings. A proven service in its eighteenth year—as Energy Design Assistance (EDA) provided by The Weidt Group—the goal of the CNC program is to reduce the energy consumption of new construction projects by encouraging the building owner, architect, and engineers to implement an integrated package of energy-saving strategies through whole building analysis. To date, these programs have addressed over 1000 buildings with more than 130 million square feet, saving over $72 million annually.
The Weidt Group provides EDA services to architects, engineers and building owners for similar programs offered by Xcel Energy, since 1992, MidAmerican Energy Company, since 1999, and Alliant Energy/IPL, since 2005, resulting in financial incentives to the building owner for the implementation of energy-saving strategies.
2009-Aug-12
The Weidt Group Collaborates with One-third of the ENR Top 100 Green Design Firms
Congratulations to all of the Engineering News-Record Top 100 Green Design Firms! We are pleased and honored to work with 9 of the Top 10 and 1/3 of the Top 100. Read more at ENR's website.
2009-Aug-12
Prasad Vaidya becomes Technical Resource Expert for The Climate Positive Development Program through the Clinton Climate Initiative
The Climate Positive Development Program (Climate+) will support the development of large-scale urban projects that strive to reduce the amount of on-site carbon emissions to below zero. Mr. Vaidya's role as Technical Resource Expert will be to assist the Climate+ developments as they strive to achieve Climate+ standards, which will include working with the Climate+ team to develop standards and metrics, best practices / technologies, and documents that assist the Climate+ program. For more information on the Climate Positive Development Program, visit the Clinton Foundation website.
2009-Jan-29
Prasad Vaidya on glass and climate in livemint.com
We can’t seem to have enough of glass. It has become the symbol of modernity. And with good reason too. It is a versatile industrial material, lets in light through windows, lets us see through (or not, depending on whether it is translucent) and makes for shiny, clean surfaces and building forms.
2009-Jan-16
St. Olaf's Regents Hall earns prestigious Xcel Energy Award
St. Olaf College's Regents Hall of Natural and Mathematical Sciences has received Xcel Energy's Best-Integrated Design award from the company's Energy Design Assistance Program. The competition evaluated more than 100 projects completed between 2006 and 2008. The award was presented during a ceremony in Minneapolis Jan. 12.
2009-Jan-02
Normandale 'LEEDs' the Way
Given the current state of commercial real estate, one might be forgiven for thinking that what Bloomington, MN, does not need is another office building. But in the case of the upcoming 8200 Tower at Normandale Lake Office Park, that may not be true.
2008-Oct-31
2008 eco-structure Evergreen Award - First Place for IAMU Facility
An Iowa Municipal Facility Demonstrates Exemplary Performance Throughout Its Life
2008-Oct-20
Rockwell Collins Building Receives LEED® Gold Certification
The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) has recognized a Rockwell Collins newly constructed building in Cedar Rapids with its Leadership in Energy and Environment Design (LEED) Gold Certification.
“This achievement was possible through a total team effort involving Rockwell Collins and OPN Architects, Ryan Companies, Alliant Energy, The Weidt Group®, Siemens and KJWW Engineering,” said Jeff Moore, senior vice president, Operations, for Rockwell Collins.
2008-Oct-01
Read the latest article from The Weidt Group in Energy Efficiency
Design teams evaluating the performance of energy conservation measures (ECMs) calculate energy savings rigorously with established modeling protocols, accounting for the interaction between various measures. However, incremental cost calculations do not have a similar rigor. Often there is no recognition of cost reductions with integrated design, nor is there assessment of cost interactions amongst measures. This lack of rigor feeds the notion that high-performance buildings cost more, creating a barrier for design teams pursuing aggressive high-performance outcomes. This study proposes an alternative integrated methodology to arrive at a lower perceived incremental cost for improved energy performance.
2008-Sep-18
Iowa Senator Tom Harkin On Progress in the East Marshall Community School District
"Excellent schools do not just pop up like mushrooms after a rain. They are the product of vision, leadership, persistence, and a tremendous amount of collaboration among local officials and concerned citizens. I salute the entire staff, administration, and governance in the East Marshall Community School District. In particular, I would like to recognize the leadership of the board of education--Mike Strawn, Dave Scott, Robert Thomas, Connie Allen and Steve Edwards. I would also like to recognize superintendent Dr. Alan Meyer, high school principal Rex Kozak, Dave Harrison from Design Alliance, The Weidt Group, Alliant Energy and the Iowa Department of Natural Resources."
2008-Jun-04
The Weidt Group is founding reporter of The Climate Registry
“The Weidt Group has demonstrated exemplary environmental leadership by courageously stepping forward to support The Climate Registry in its preliminary stages. We are deeply grateful for their integral support in helping to address the challenge of climate change,” said Gina McCarthy, Chair of The Climate Registry.
2008-May-10
The Weidt Group is LEED® consultant for Aviva’s new USA Headquarters
Striving for a LEED gold rating was a goal from day one... ...Littlefield said. This fits in with its parent company's goal to be more environmentally friendly. "We're the first insurance company that globally went to a carbon-neutral position with respect to its operations," Littlefield said. "It's a very high priority for the organization to reduce our footprint and be a good citizen in the communities we where operate."
2008-Jan-29
David Eijadi named one of the Midwest Real Estate News Forty over 40
Mr. Eijadi, Principal of The Weidt Group, is one of the key individuals who directs the firm's Design Assistance services for sustainable design and high performance buildings. A LEED® Accredited Professional, he has consulted to architectural desing teams on utility-sponsored Energy Design Assistance (EDA) in Minnesota, Iowa and Colorado.
2008-Jan-12
WCCO Press
"A platinum certification is extraordinary, really," said David Ejadi, an architect who's worked on sustainable design and construction.
"To go from LEED gold to LEED platinum is a huge challenge because they're asking you to do everything, to literally leave nothing on the table," said David Eijadi, from the The Weidt Group.
2007-Dec-10
Las Vegas PBS Press
Representatives of the Weidt Group, which oversees the environmental impact of building design and construction, will discuss the concepts and designs behind the new three-story, $37.5 million Vegas PBS Technology Campus, expected to be completed in October 2008.